Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb, R-Canandaigua, announced Friday a GOP Assembly Conference plan to reform implementation of the state's new learning standards, Common Core.Kolb wrote in a column that members of the Assembly Minority Conference this fall "engaged parents, students, teachers, administrators and concerned community members about the shortcomings of the implementation of the Common Core Standards." The conference's 11-stop tour of the state resulted in the group compiling "a number of reforms to the state's education system aimed at protecting students and teachers alike," Kolb stated.

Called the Apple Plan, it seeks to address issues such as student stress, "data-mining" and funding, Kolb said.

Proposals in the Apple Plan (Achieving Pupil Preparedness & Launching Excellence) include slowing down implementation of the Common Core State Standards; providing funding for professional development; eliminating the Gap Elimination Adjustment (using education funds to close budget gaps in other areas); reducing over-reliance on student testing;

reasserting that an Individualized Education Program is the supreme document for the education of a child with special needs; and requiring that parents consent to any disclosure of student information to a third party.

A copy of the report is athttp://www.scribd.com/doc/201479293/At-the-Educational-Crossroads.